Chapter 194 - 194 186 Bone Fracture

Words : 2033 Updated : Sep 23rd, 2025

194: Chapter 186: Bone Fracture 194: Chapter 186: Bone Fracture On the autopsy table, thick fluids ceaselessly dripped out. In the beginning, when more fluids drained, someone would rinse it down with water, but gradually, everyone pretended not to see it. The entire dissection room was as if it had been submerged in abalone sauce. Such a scene was as rare as a Cantonese kitchen boiling four large pots of dried abalone. The pressure cooker started hissing as it began to steam. Another stainless steel pot was brought over. Wang Lan said, “Just boil normally in this pot, use this bag...” The bodies in the four bags had been stored for varying lengths of time. The oldest had flesh that had almost completely liquefied, while the flesh of the most recent one seemed to still have some muscle tissues hanging off it. But as the bag was opened, its oxidation visibly increased, making it possible to collect some DNA samples. The one just boiled in the pressure cooker was of a medium level of decomposition. Now, Wang Lan had chosen the one with the oldest remains. Since boiling in a regular pot required an even more complex process, choosing the oldest made the task of removing bones somewhat easier. Two unfamiliar medical examiners stepped forward, silently selecting some bones to place into the large stainless steel pot. The Qinghe Bureau had bought stainless steel pots originally used for steaming buns, which could easily steam fifty or sixty buns with their layered trays. Now, with the addition of flesh and bones, it could accommodate thirty or forty pounds without issues. Some of the flesh that hadn’t completely detached was piled together with the bones into the stainless steel barrel. The two medical examiners deliberately put in less, choosing bones like the spine and pelvic bones to begin with, then added water and let it simmer over the fire. The room full of medical examiners fell somewhat silent. Mainly because they were not very familiar with each other, and secondly, because the odor was unbearable. Especially the boiling bones, they gave off a slight fragrance, mixed with the stench of rot and the pervasive smell of death... Jiang Yuan speculated that the reason humans detest such smells so much is probably because the body has embedded this aversion in our DNA—most likely it means something like “don’t eat it, run away.” “Have you all eaten?” Niu Tong Niu, the Forensic Doctor, felt it was his duty to be hospitable. “You guys go ahead, I’ll keep an eye on the boiling,” said Medical Examiner Wang Lan, who usually played a supporting role, but this time took on hosting duties. As she spoke, the water in the stainless steel pot boiled. Medical Examiner Wang Lan stepped forward to turn the heat down low, saying, “This pot needs to simmer on low heat for three or four hours. You go get something to eat first and then come back to scrape off the tendons.” Boiling human bones until they are clean follows the same principle as boiling pork bones. Similarly, once the meat has been boiled down to the bone, there might still be some tendons or fascia left clinging to the bone. Further boiling could deform the bones at this point, so they should be scraped clean with a knife. Jiang Yuan instinctively didn’t feel like eating, saying, “I won’t go either, changing clothes is too much trouble.” Several younger medical examiners also decided to stay behind. There weren’t enough shower heads in the bathroom for everyone—if everyone decided to go, it would be impossible. With the odors they’d acquired today, they wouldn’t be able to leave without a thorough wash. Better to keep their clothes on and cope with the smell than to strip down and potentially expose themselves further. Wang Lan probably had similar thoughts. Being a female medical examiner, she wasn’t usually affected, but using the shower room now would be inconvenient. “We’ll go eat first then, and come back to relieve you,” Niu Tong called out, leading the others, including Ye from Longli County’s medical examiners, to go and change. Wang Lan responded with a “hm” and didn’t say much more, simply getting a ladle to stir the bones in the stainless steel pot to prevent them from sticking and causing complications. Wang Lan, who never cooked at home, who would have thought she was extremely proficient at simmering meat until it fell off the bone. Jiang Yuan took advantage of the lull to open another plastic bag, spilled out the chunks of flesh, and pieced them loosely together. The plastic bag was of exceptional quality, and there were heavy stones inside. A detailed inspection of the fingerprints and DNA could be done, though Jiang Yuan wasn’t too hopeful about it. Jiang Yuan sifted through the body parts mainly to see if there were any distinguishing features that could help identify the source. Something as identifiable as tattoos could remain even on a decomposed body. Or, for instance, if hair was still present, it meant at least that the body wasn’t bald or had a shaved head, and so on. As it turned out, Jiang Yuan was overthinking it. All four bodies appeared to be quite ordinary – none seemed like they had ever joined something like the U.S. Marine Corps. After Wang Lan had stirred the stainless steel pot three times, the bones in the pressure cooker were ready. With a stern face, Wang Lan found a pair of chopsticks, used them to lift the valve on the pressure cooker, and listened to the hissing release of steam and the strong scent of meat that followed. The few medical examiners who remained in the dissection room were too listless to speak. Honestly, by this time, everyone was getting a bit hungry, but at the moment, it didn’t feel right even to swallow saliva. Regardless of what others felt appropriate, Jiang Yuan himself found it quite inappropriate. It was a good thing the abalone sauce had all been consumed, otherwise it would have been a waste. “It’s ready,” Wang Lan announced as the pressure in the cooker dissipated, then she opened the lid. Inside, a dark soup with a thick layer of oil floated on top was revealed. Wang Lan sighed and remarked, “Seems like people are getting a bit too overweight these days.” “The fats must have gone rancid,” another medical examiner from the municipal bureau added, then peered in and commented, “Maybe the person was overweight when alive – there’s more oil here than when I cook pork knuckles.” “Pigs only have a 15% body fat ratio, not much different from mine,” Medical Examiner Wang Lan, slim and slender. It’s just that women naturally have a higher body fat ratio than men. The few forensic doctors present couldn’t help but size up Wang Lan and nodded to each other. Wang Lan rolled her eyes and went to get a large bottle of alcohol, pouring it into a basin. The bones boiled out, washed clean on the outside with water, were then soaked in alcohol, and the remaining fat was cleaned off. The bones turned startlingly white and clean, the yellowish shade under the light provided only a mild visual impact—after all, the dissecting table next to them was piled with dirty, smelly chunks of corpse. “Let’s arrange them together,” Wang Lan called Jiang Yuan over to help identify characteristic bones. Among the forensic doctors present, she trusted Jiang Yuan the most. The other young coroners, although older than Jiang Yuan by a few years, were levels behind him in terms of ability. Wang Lan had carefully reviewed the autopsies Jiang Yuan had performed, which was also part of her job. In forensic anthropology, Jiang Yuan was clearly very talented. Among the tasks at the scene, identifying bones was the easiest. Jiang Yuan and Wang Lan cleared a dissecting table and began laying out the bones one by one on it, creating the outline of a skeleton lying there. The others helped by placing the bones in alcohol to clean them, then emptied the water used to boil the corpse and continued to cook other chunks of flesh in fresh water. Meanwhile, several young coroners observed Jiang Yuan and Wang Lan’s work. Cases involving dismemberment were quite rare. For the medical examiners, this was a rare learning opportunity. Actually, in normal dismemberment cases, the body parts are not cut this small. Most murderers, even those involved in dismemberment cases, might initially commit crimes of passion. When they decide to dismember a body to cover up the crime, most haven’t thought through the difficult scenario they would face. Human bones are very hard and heavy. Nowadays, there are still women who weigh less than 100 pounds, while a man’s weight usually adds another 30 pounds at least, with many men weighing about 150 pounds. In other words, if one were to divide a man into 5 pieces, each piece would weigh about 30 pounds, and just moving them would be exhausting. Imagine a butcher cutting up pork; common pigs weighing over a hundred or 200 pounds are hung in the air to be cut. This position is taken because it’s the most energy-efficient. Ordinary people without experience in dismemberment wouldn’t know the importance of having meat hooks and ropes ready. Additionally, the act of cutting itself is challenging, requiring skill at least at level 6 difficulty. Those who couldn’t even distinguish the sirloin would be impressive if they knew where to cut on the waist and neck. To be more meticulous in dismemberment, one would either need to understand the greater and lesser trochanters, or have powerful cutting equipment like a chainsaw. Still, the cutting would be difficult and exhausting. Therefore, in most hasty dismemberment cases, the pieces of the body tend to be larger. The chunks of the corpse in this case, many weighing less than 10 pounds, at least suggest the murderer had a strong build and knew how to handle powerful machinery. Jiang Yuan picked up a bone, examined it, and then placed it on the dissecting table, before reaching for another. Wang Lan did similar work, but she first searched through the pile of bones for the one she wanted, then took it out and placed it on the dissecting table. All present were forensic doctors, and it didn’t take long for them to notice the difference in approach. Wang Lan stopped what she was doing in silence. Although she was familiar enough with bones, to just pick up a bone and be certain of its position on the dissecting table—she could do that, but her efficiency would be much lower. More importantly, this method did not allow Wang Lan to form an adequate recognition of the skeletal remains, which could affect her judgment of the bones. So, Wang Lan simply stopped and decided to wait until Jiang Yuan had finished arranging the bones before starting from the beginning again. Jiang Yuan swiftly laid out the pelvic bone. Seeing this, one of the younger coroners nearby made a judgment, saying, “It’s a female. She has given birth.” “Around 40 years old.” ... “Her height is about 170 centimeters.” At this, Jiang Yuan made a comment that startled everyone. Wang Lan couldn’t help but ask, “How did you determine that?” The most common bones used to determine age are the long bones of the limbs, but they hadn’t been boiled out yet because of the limited space in the pressure cooker. Jiang Yuan said, “I started with the lumbar vertebrae, and we can verify that later.” “Let’s note that down for now,” Wang Lan said, half-convinced. Using a single bone to determine everything is the goal of forensic anthropology, but the difficulty in achieving this is very high. Wang Lan’s research in this area wasn’t in-depth. The several young medical examiners beside her immediately became more attentive. Everyone had some understanding of the limits of forensic anthropology, but when would such extreme knowledge come into play in the workplace?

Chapter 194 - 194 186 Bone Fracture

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